Far & Near

Earlier this week we had a client come to see us who required “only reading glasses”. These were his exact words and what he meant was that there was nothing wrong with his distance vision. In fact he could see really well in the long distance and was able and legally allowed to drive without glasses. However, he found that he was struggling to see close up and had come across the “arms are getting too short” syndrom a few years earlier already. We examined his eyes and found that indeed, he didn’t require a distance prescription and for his close distance (to read at a distance of 35 to 40cm) he required a correction of +2.25. Easy, right? Just get some +2.25 readers and the problem is solved, right? Well, as is our duty, we tried to find out a little more about his day to day work, just so we could confirm that this was indeed all he required. ... read more

The new buzz word in the world of optical spectacle lenses is “Freeform“. The term “Freeform” in relation to lenses is often misinterpreted as just a new design concept for progressive added lenses. This is actually not so. Strictly speaking, the term relates to an exciting new manufacturing process for spectacle lenses that allows to create optimised and individualised lens designs taking into consideration not only the actually required prescription of the wearer (say distance and/or near power), but also, amongst others, the frame parameters and, most importantly, the user’s lifestyle and work requirements. ... read more

Two questions we get asked quite often. Unfortunately there are no easy answers, in particular to the first part of the question. So why is this? Well, it’s a bit like asking “how much is a car and why are some more expensive than others?”. Even that question cannot be answered easily, because let’s face it, all cars, will get you from A to B, eventually, but some will do it more reliably than others, or in more comfort than others, or faster than others, or more economically than others. The list goes on. It’s a bit like that for progressive lenses as well. ... read more

Let’s say you are shopping for prescription sunglasses. A good way to do it is to use a “normal” pair of sunglasses and replace the lenses with your prescription. Ideally you want the final product to look as close as possible to the original pair you selected when they still had non-prescription lenses in them. We have already discussed the basic requirements that prescription sunglasses should fulfill. That includes a good coverage, good glare protection and certainly good UV protection. We are very fortunate at the moment that the sunglasses fashion is big, beautiful and many of them even wrap around the face nicely. But can we fit all prescription lenses into frames like that? ... read more

When the first people come into the shop and ask if it is possible to get sunglasses made with prescription lenses, we know that summer isn’t far away. The simple answer to this question is “yes”. OK, there are a few restrictions, but in general terms it is possible to make prescription sunglasses for most glasses wearers. They can be done in single vision, bifocal and even progressive powered lenses. So what qualifies as a pair of prescription sunglasses then? I know there is some debate over this. Many consider any prescription lenses that are tinted to a degree darker than, say, 50% as being sunglass lenses. Personally I tend to disagree with this. ... read more

As mentioned in an earlier post, Kodak have introduced a new progressive lens with “Anti Fatigue Technology”. Claudia and I were invited to attend a seminar where the philosophy and manufacturing process of this new approach to “anti-fatigue” progressive lens design was explained. For us as practicioners it is very important that we stay on top of technological developments not only on frame design, but in also on lens design. This is particularly true for progressive addition lenses (PAL) because the manufacturing technology for these kind of lenses seems to be developing incredibly fast. ... read more

Much has been written and said about progressive powered lenses. Today there are many different designs available from many different manufacturers. The choice is such, that many progressive lens wearers are starting to get confused. “What type of lens is the right one for me?” “Are they not all just the same anyway?” “Or are they just trying to sell me the most expensive one?” ... read more

This is a common complaint by many people who are doing a lot of reading, working in an office environment and have to wear glasses for reading. On a typical day, most office workers spend more than six hours in front of a computer screen. Even for those with excellent vision, staring at a VDU screen all day can cause eyestrain, headaches, watery eyes – the list goes on. ... read more

Probably the only complaint we receive about Transitions lenses is that many people feel they don’t go dark enough behind a windscreen to give good glare protection. Unfortunately this is true, simply because Transitions lenses on their own require ultra violet light to react and  to go dark. The problem is that behind the windscreen of a car, there just isn’t enough ultra violet light available for them to go dark to their full extend. Now, unless you are driving a concertible with the roof folded, you would have experienced exactly that. So what is the solution to this? ... read more

“I really like the idea of rimless eyeglasses. It’s a pity they are not suitable for me.” That is a comment I heard today from a client who was looking at our collection of Lindberg Spirit frames. Needless to say, I was intrigued. “What makes you say that you cannot wear rimless frames?” I asked. “Well, I really like the idea of rimless eyeglasses, but I was told that I can’t have it because of my high prescription and because the lenses would chip too easily”. ... read more